Marlon’s Marketing Minute #23 (July 19, 2008)
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Hello,
Marlon here with another Marlon's Marketing Minute.
Today's article is something I can't describe or explain.
You've never read anything like it I dare say. It's the part
where I talk about your “Born Identity.”
I want you to read that. And I want to ask you to let it soak in
them give me your reaction.
If it opens your eyes, let me know.
If you disagree or think it sucks, let me know.
https://www.marlonsnews.com
Marlon
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Marlon's Marketing Minute
Electronic Newsletter
http://www.promotemarlon.com
Vol. 3, #23, July 18, 2008
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This issue contains:
A. Sponsor Advertisement: Who Else Wants To Increase Sales,
Reactive Dead Customers, Build Your List Or Become Famous
In Your Niche?
B. Announcements from Marlon (Important)
C. Main Article: The article with no title that I can't
describe
D. Services You Can Use
Brought to you by: Marlon Sanders – Publisher
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A. SPONSOR ADVERTISEMENT
Coming soon:
I'll soon be releasing a wonderful product on how to promote
that I think will help you tons.
Be watching for it….
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B. ANNOUNCEMENTS FROM MARLON
One: Do You Have Unresolved Customer Support Issues?
If you have a customer support issue of ANY type, whether it
may be a question on affiliate commissions, product not
received, problem logging in or just something you're confused
about, here is how to get help:
http://www.getyourproduct.com
Two: New BONUS coming when I get it done for Evergreen Traffic
buyers.
I'm having Tinu's audio transcribed. And I'm creating a nifty
“mini-dashboard” that'll be down-and-dirty but very useful to
you in implementing her method.
This is my way of rewarding those of you who trusted me to give
you the best value I could in exchange for the money you gave me.
For $100, I can only deliver so much. But I want to say thanks
and try to reward you with value in excess of what you paid me for.
It'll be 2-3 weeks before I deliver this. But you WILL like it.
For those few of you who refunded with a flash trigger, what I have
to say is I've worked harder than most to reward my customers with
high quality information, even if the packaging wasn't always
flawless.
I've never promoted crap. I've done my best to tell you the truth.
I've tried my God's honest best to give you a better start in this
game than I ever had. For those of you who recognize and appreciate
that, I thank you.
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C. The Article I Can't Describe
By Marlon Sanders
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Dear Reader,
Stick with this article.
It begins in a conventional way. But then, I go into territory
you've probably never read, thought or heard of before.
It's a long article. But I think it'll be worth your time.
I've been in the business of selling online since before
the WWW began (back in AOL and Compuserve days).
I've made a full-time living at this since before most
gurus were even IN Internet marketing.
I see LOTS of people claiming to have been “in Internet
marketing” for a long time. But were they actually making
a full-time living?
I've been not just “in” Internet marketing but making a very
good full-time living for longer than virtually anyone in
this market.
So I've learned a few things about how you promote products
and services. I'm talking about once you have folks on
your list, how do you get 'em to buy?
Here are a few things I've learned over the years.
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1. Know your email process in and out.
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Whether you use Automateyourwebsite.com, Aweber or Getresponse,
know it in and out.
Look at it like it's your cash cow and you GOTTA keep it living.
You should know:
a. How to create a web form to get subscribers
This includes doing inline forms as well as pop-ups.
b. How to read your stats
c. How to pass variables
d. How to insert names in subject lines and emails
e. How to create and test thank you pages
f. How to create and test confirmation emails
g. How to monetize your confirmation page
h. How to create opt-in pages that work
i. How to track your email delivery
j. How to monitor your subscribes and unsubscribes
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2. Create promos in different media
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Over the years I've used podcasts, blogs, videos, screen capture
video, webinars, teleseminars and live streaming video.
You need be confident in creating these things. You should know
how to put up a WordPress blog or do a screen capture video.
Or stick a podcast on your blog.
Podcasts are a great way to get info out to your audience in a
little different format than the same old, same old. And a podcast
lets you inject personality, which hopefully you have some of.
Podcasts are a great way to “set your frame” vs. your competition.
They're a great way to sell your differentiation and tell your
creation story.
Pre-recorded video lets people see YOU. A little bit goes a long
ways. But it can be a terrific way to communicate by adding a
visual element.
Blogs, screen video, teleseminars, streaming video — these are
ALL our tools as communicators.
Here's my formula. This is the RED FACTOR formula made simple:
Step one: Analyze your competition
Step two: Create a winning value proposition
Value = {Benefits – Costs} x Convenience
Step three: Communicate that winning value proposition through
every means and channel you can
That is Red Factor right there. Basically, you get an advantage
and then you communicate the living daylights out of it. And
you do that through all the media — podcasts, video, screen video,
blogs, live video. The whole nine yards.
Now, if you're part time, if you're just getting started, you take
this one step at a time. You don't gotta do it all today!
But this is the vision, the direction.
What's funny is, the hardest part for me to explain to people about
the Red Factor concept is the idea of “getting an advantage.”
People are like, “Marlon, I wanna make BANK! What's this crap about
getting an advantage? I don't wanna COMPETE! I just wanna be in
niche where no one else is and the money is big.”
People who tell you you aren't competing are flat out lying to you.
Period.
Why? Because no one has unlimited dollars to spend. So you are
competing with them spending those dollars with you vs. Starbucks,
bookstores, or whatever.
Even if there ARE no competitors in your niche, you STILL compete
for people to spend money with you vs. something else. Competing
sounds hard! But really, it's LIFE, baby!
The day you were born, you began competing for the attention of
your parents vs. the TV or other stuff. How? By crying!
It was your FIRST marketing ploy!
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3. Embrace Your BORN IDENTITY
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This is the part I hope you read carefully. It is the part I
doubt you've heard or read before.
You were a promoter and a marketer the freakin' day you were born!
You implemented your first promotional tool (crying) the day you
were born.
You broke through the noise in the market to get attention the
day you were born!
You ARE a marketer by design. Embrace your destiny!
You sold your parents on getting you a toy for Christmas. Or
sold your teachers that you lost the homework.
It's in your BLOOD! Some of you just don't realize it's in
your blood. If you really want something from someone, you
DO know how to communicate and get it.
Now, you just gotta translate THAT skill or ability into
communicating benefits to a marketplace.
Into differentiating yourself or what you sell from everyone
else. Give people reasons to buy from YOU.
If you can't think of ANY reason in the world for someone to
spend their money with you instead of someone else, then you
need Red Factor.
You need to learn to analyze value propositions. You need to
learn to CREATE.
We are creators.
Making a living online is about CREATING value. Competing is
about creating more VALUE than the next person. Or doing a
better job at communicating the value you create.
But this is an act of creation.
It's an ART as much or more than a science.
Creation is the ultimate joy in life. If you have kids, you
are a creator.
If you have grass growing in your yard, you are a creator. You
created life.
If you have plants, if you have a business, if you can create
music, if you can sing or create melodic sounds, if you can
influence people with ideas….
BABY — You ARE a creator!
It's in your blood. You can't escape IT. You just need to let
it escape out of you! Out of your brain into the outside world.
The act of creation is the most sacred act on earth. It's spiritual.
It's beautiful. And that's what we are here for.
We are here on this earth to create.
You may have lost touch with your creation ability. Your ability
to create and then communicate.
If you have, then find your destiny. Realize creating is part of
you. You've been creating effects, creating results ALL your life.
That's all an entreprenuer is.
An entrepreneur is a creating living and acting by laws of creation.
Laws of bringing things into being. Into existence.
There are laws of creating value and laws of communicating that
value.
If you don't have the bank account you want, you either aren't
creating value you are aren't communicating it to enough people
with enough force, effect and creativity.
It's TIME for you.
It's time for you to find your essence. Your being. It's time for
you to begin CREATING.
Some people in this business think the only way to make a dime is
to copy someone else. Fair enough if you add value.
But it still ONLY works if you create. If you add value.
This business IS about creating value and promoting or communicating
that value to people in the “market” for that value. That is your
target market. The people who are “in the market” for the value
you've created and offered.
You probably have a job.
You've been used all your life to doing what people told you to do.
So in terms of your occupation, you may not be used to creating.
But in all the rest of your life, you have been creating since the
day you were born.
You've been marketing, promoting, since the day you were born.
Did you know you can create value for your living? That people
will pay you to create value for them?
Here's an example. A guy who was a teacher. And now makes a living
on the Net.
http://www.lee-mcintyre.com/blog/
That's NOT an affiliate link. But I bought his products just as
I buy dozens if not hundreds of others every year. And I admire
his ethics and the way he believes in delivering value to his list.
Lee, in my opinion, is a beautiful example of having a small list
but doing quite well by creating and delivering value.
His approach is simple.
He delivers value to his list. And then also sells stuff. People
reward him with purchases. You know, I hate to say this but I
think he expressed what he does and how he does it better than I
could have.
With all the hype and the obsession with how much you can make
in a day or an hour. With all the emphasis on money not soul,
it's nice to see someone doing well who manages to combine money
and soul.
It's not about the biggest numbers. It's about finding who you
are. Your destiny. About being able to create value for others
who recognize and appreciate that value.
If you can do that, I think you have a good life. An honest life.
A life worth living. And I think life will reward you with a good
living. Maybe not a millionaire's life. But a good life.
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4. Be able to do the basics yourself — even if you outsource
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Some people would say outsource everything.
And I believe I created the FIRST product that showed in detail
how to outsource on Elance. It was called Digital Product Creation
System. And I was doing this stuff WAY back before anyone even
knew what outsourcing meant.
And having a lot of experience, I will tell you that I still believe
you should be able to do the basics yourself.
Do you outsource? Yes. But if you can't do the basics yourself,
you'll be subject to having smoke blown up the nether regions of
your body by people who want to create a mystique around what they
do.
Let me give you an example:
A long time ago when Lisa worked for me and we were figuring out
graphic design, there was this particular way of doing a curved
sidebar that we really wanted to do.
We just could NOT figure out how to do it.
So we hired 3 people off of elance to do it for us.
None of the 3 did it right. One did it fairly well. But we never
used the design.
Today, I know HOW to do that effect in Photoshop. It takes 5
seconds. You use the warp tool. Grab. Pull. 5 seconds.
But I spent $250 or more on the freelancers and didn't get
something that was decent.
People will try to pull the wool over your eyes. They'll try to
mystify processes, so they can be lazy, work slowly and
charge you a fortune for something simple.
Like one time someone told me they had to “put in the infrastructure.”
I was like, “WHAT infrastructure? Dude, there ain't no infrastructure.”
I'm all for outsourcing.
But I still believe you need to know the basics.
For example, podcasting. A podcast is an mp3 file delivered via RSS.
Once you have Podpress installed on your blog, it's automatic.
Piece of cake.
The word “pod” comes from the idea that people can listen to the
audio on their IPOD. The word “cast” gives the idea of broadcasting
your audio TO people's IPOD's.
That is where RSS comes into play.
Or how about header graphics.
Listen hither: You CAN do basic graphics far easier than you think.
The initial fear of all the doodads on Photoshop or Photoshop
Elements is 100X worse than the reality.
It's FUN once you learn a very few simple basics that trip everyone
up.
I thought Design Dashboard was an awesome product. But I'm still
disappointed that some people “didn't get it” or still weren't able
to execute.
Mostly because we have a 20-minute overview video as a bonus that
somehow people missed. So I'm gonna revisit this issue.
If you KNEW how simple and easy it was to do basic graphics, you'd
LAUGH in the face of people who tell you “Oh, you need to outsource
ALL your graphics.”
Some? Alright. But all? Please. I don't buy that.
You open Photoshop. You set your canvass size to 650 pixels wide
x 150 pixels deep. You create a little gradient. Add some text.
Add a stroke. Drop in a photo.
Done!
It can be THAT simple.
Now, will you still hire out your graphics to Design Guru Ryan,
Graphics Genie, GraphicsMaverics or any of the other highly talented
designers?
Sure. Why not? Their prices are reasonable.
It CAN be a trap to do everything yourself beyond a certain point.
Most people in the beginning have to learn to do things themselves
because they have more time than money.
But listen up. If you can't:
* Put up a podcast
* Install a blog
* Add a plugin
* Create a basic web graphic
* Insert a table in your html editor
* Upload a video to Youtube
* Shoot a Camtasia video (or CamStudio)
* Shoot some live video with decent lighting
* Add an autoresponder
* Add autoresponder opt-in form code to a web page
If you can't do ANY of that stuff, then you're going to need a full-
time employee/webmaster — NOT a freelancer.
And even then, you're gonna be frustrated.
I've been selling ebooks online by the thousands before most modern
day gurus even knew what an ebook was.
You are a creator.
You are a communicator.
Today is YOUR day because today you can create and communicate.
Let me know if this resonates with you. Let me know if you think I'm
full of it. Let me know if you see yourself as a creator. Let me
know what your hang-ups are in creating and communicating value.
Let me know how I can help you become more of who and what you are.
Or let me know if this is all too theoretical for you and all you
wanna know is how to find some plr and sell it.
Or whatever.
https://www.marlonsnews.com
I'm here to serve you. The best I can. With the skills and
knowledge I have. I can't and won't promise to make you a
millionaire.
But I can promise to show you how to create value and communicate it
to people in the market for that value. And that's a noble, honest
living serving your fellow man.
Marketing is something we can be proud of.
We are all born creators. And born marketers.
This is our Born Identity.
Marlon
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Marlon Sanders is the author of “The Info Product Dashboard.”
If you want to create your own info products, go to:
http://www.productdashboard.com
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REPRINT RIGHTS: You have permission to use the above
article without omission and including the resource box.
You have the right to insert your reseller URLs for MY
products into the article in place of MY links.
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D. “Services You Can Use”
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YOUR OWN AFFILIATE PROGRAM?
http://www.affiliatedashboard.com
PUT UP YOUR WEB SITE? Discover how easy and simple it can
be to do your own graphic design (or at least some of it).
Plus, find out the exact resources I recommend to save a
bundle. Avoid going down the wrong path.
http://www.designdashboard.com
NEED A SALES LETTER? http://www.pushbuttonletters.com
Many people have copied my software. But there really and
truly is only ONE original.
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Copyright 2008 Higher Response Marketing Inc.
All rights reserved.